adams



3 Sheets--Sheet 1.

H. W; ADAMS. Roasting and Ohlorlidizing Furnace.

No. 232,798. Patented Oct. 5,1880,

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3 sheets sheet 2. H. W. ADAMS. Roasting and Ghloridizing Furnace. No. 232,798.

Patented Oct. 5, I880.

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3 Sheets--Sheet 3.

H. W. ADAMS. Roasting and Ohloridizing Furnace.

Patented Oct. 5,1880.

ilNITEn States Parana" @rsres.

HENRY V. ADAMS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

ROASTING AND OHLORiDlZlNG FURNACE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 232,798, dated October 5, 1880.

Application filed February 28, 1880.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY W. ADAMS, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improved Roastin g and Ohloridizing Furnace, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to furnaces for roasting, desulphurizing, chloridizing, and calcinin g mineral and earthy substances.

While my invention is adapted to all the general uses of such furnaces, it is specially intended 'for roasting, desulphurizin g, and chloridizing metallic ores preparatory to grinding them and amalgamating with quicksilver, or grinding them to a suitable fineness and mixing with them a proper quantity of chloride of sodium and chloridizin g the metals contained in them, or preparatory to smelting them. I attain this object by the mechanism illustrated by the accompanying drawings, of which Figure l is a perspective view of my furnace. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section on the line as w of Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a vertical crosssection on the line y y of Fig. 2.

Similar letters refer to similar parts.

The letter G represents grate-bars. These make a floor for the fuel about four feet wide and eighteen feet long, more or less. Underneath is the ash-pit H, the same width and length, and about two feet deep.

The letter I represents fourteen rctorts, more or less, one half standing at one side of the grate-bars and the other half standing at the opposite side of the said bars, and inclined to ward each other, so that the top ends of each pair touch each other. These retorts are ten feet long, more or less, and two feet in internal diameter at their bottom ends, and eighteen inches in internaldiameter at their top ends, more or less. They may be made of castiron or well-burned clay. If of clay, they should be about three inches thick. Clay is the best material. The inclination of these retorts forms a combustion and heating chamber, J, above the grate-bars.

K represents the two opposite side walls of the furnace, which inclose the retorts. They should be built of bricks and be at least eighteen inches thick. They are inclined to Ward each other from the bottom to the top at the same angle as that of the retorts. The space between these walls and the rctorts should be about six inches. The twoopposite ends L are built up with walls of similar thickness snugly against the two sides, so as to inclose the retorts within a heating-chamber. The bottom ends of the retorts are placed closely in contact with each other, while their top ends, being narrower, produce open spaces M between them.

i The letter N represents flues through the bottom of the two side walls, K, for the escape of the products of combustion. The number of flues through each side wall is eight when the number of retorts on each side is seven. The area of these flues is about six inches square, more or less.

Outside of the two side walls, K, are built the two outer walls, 0, eighteen inches thick and six inches distant from the inner walls, leaving a chamber, 1 between the outer and inner wall on each side of the furnace about six inches wide. This chamber is designed to receive the products of combustion from the flues N. To make an equal draft from these two opposite chambers the two horizontal pipes Q are made to communicate with them by three openings, B. These openings should be about one foot in diameter.

The pipes Q should be about eighteen inches each in diameter and about twelve feet long, and should be made to rest on piers.

S represents two short upright pipes inserted into Q, having a diameter of about fifteen inches each, to conduct the products of combustion into the cross-pipes T, which should be about ten feet long and eighteen inches in diameter. From the middle of these pipes rises an uptake, U, about eight feet high and twelve inches in internal diameter. All these pipes should be made of thin boiler-iron.

Near the bottom end of the uptakes U are inserted the two steam-pipes V, for the purpose of admitting jets of steam to create a draft. A stack may be built to secure a draft.

From these arrangements it will be seen that when the grate bars are supplied with the proper quantity of ignited coal, wood, or other suitable fuel the heated products of combustion will fill the chamber J, and, rising up to its top, will pass through the open spaces M and down between the retorts and the inside walls, K, and through the several flues N into the chambers P, and through the openings B into the pipes Q, S, T, and U into the open air. When jets of steam are caused to shoot up through U any desired degree of draft will be produced. As a consequence the entire number of retorts will become red-hot from top to bottom.

To create a still more powerful heat for rapid roasting, two blast-pipes, W, are placed in thechambers X in each side of the ash pit wall. These pipes are connected by the cross-pipe Y, and into the middle of this pipe is inserted the pipe Z, to receive a blast of air from a suitable blower or engine. The pipes W are three inches in diameter and as long as the ash pit.. Both ends are closed tightly. They are perforated withfine holes from end to end to allow the compressed air to escape into and fill the chambers X. Many small holes a open from this chamber into the ash-pit under the grate-bars. WVhen the ashpit door is closed a uniform pressure of air fills it. It rises up through the grate-bars and through the burning fuel, and intensifies the combustion to any desired degree.

The heat of this furnace, thus equipped and operated, will have a capacity of roasting and chloridizin g most effectually thirty tons of ore in twenty-four hours.

The letter 1) represents eight piers about two feet high and running back to the ash-pit and furnace-wall on both sides of the fireplace, on which the bottom ends of the several retorts rest. The chambers c are thus formed, which extend backunder the open ends of the several retorts, so that the ore or other substances with which the said retorts are charged may be drawn out from time to time.

The top and bottom ends of the several retorts should be made with square flanges, so that their top ends may lean against each other and the square rims touch, so as to close up the top of the combustion-chamber and form a solid floor above it. The bottom ends of the retorts will have a better bearing by this construction on piers upon which they rest.

The top ends ofeach pair of retorts, which touch each other by leaning obliquely toward each other, are bricked around, so as to form a solid top to the combustion and heating chamber J, and also the separate boxes 6, which surround the open ends of each pair of retorts. Each of these boxes is directly under one of the hoppers f, so that the ore fed into these several hoppers may fallinto the several boxes below them, and from thence into the open ends of each pair of retorts, and fill them in the firstplace and charge them from time to timeasthe'roasted and chloridized ore is Withdrawn from the chambers c. It is manifest that when the retorts are first charged, having been first raised to a red heat, a portion of unroasted ore will fall through the 'the lower end of each retort.

retorts into the chambers c. This must be shoveled out after a period of two or three hours and thrown back into the hoppers f.

It takes from two to three hours (more or less) to roast, desulphurize, and chloridize a retort full of ore. Hence the ore should be removed from the chambers 0 about once an hour, and in amount equal to about one-third of the charge in each retort. This operation lets the upper part of the charge down toward This occasions a very needful movement in each charge of ore in passing from the top to the bottom of the retorts, by which each particle of ore is shifted in position from time to time and new surfaces are exposed to new conditions of heat and chemical action. The internal diameter of the retorts, increasing from top to bottom, favors the easy passage of the ore through them.

As the several charges are removed in portions from time to time, an equal amount of fresh ore should be introduced into the hoppers f, so as to keep the retorts constantly full.

It is absolutely necessary that a copious supply of atmospheric air should pass through the several retorts and through the heated ore with which they are charged during the operation of roasting and chloridizing, so as to supply oxygen to burn out the sulphura'nd oxidize the iron and other metals. To secure this important result, 9 is a vacuum-chamber, fitted air-tight to the top of the furnace and inclosing all of the upper mouths of the retorts. The letter his an exhaust-pipe about one foot in diameter, extending through the whole length of this chamber. It is thickly perforated with holes about one-fourth of an inch in diameter throughout its entire length in the chamber. Its internal end is closed. The other end passes air-tight through the end of the chamber, and looks up by means of an elbow, and forms the discharge-pipe 'i. The

letter j is a steam-pipe inserted into the lastmentioned pipe for the purpose of introducing a jet of steam to create a powerful draft. This discharge-pipe should be made of clay, so as not to be affected by sulphurous-acid gas, &c.

The several hoppers f are surrounded by 'respective vessels for the purpose of holding water, quicksilver, or any other sealing-fluid. The covers 1 are set into these vessels, completely covering and sealin g the mouths of the several hoppers.

Plates of iron or tiles may be employed as covers, and may be luted with clayor other suitable material to make them air-tight.

The letter at is a man-hole door in one end of the chamber g. This door is always kept closed when the furnace is in operation,"and luted air-tight with clay or other suitabl'esubstance. I v

The letter y shows a series of-plu'gs,' which fill holes through the two outer walls near their bottoms, which may be withdrawn forthepnrpose of removing the ashes from'the flu'es N,

passing through the bottom ends of the two side walls, K.

It is now obvious from these arrangements that when a jet of steam escapes from j and expands inz' a partial vacuum will be made in the chamber g. This will cause atmospheric air to rush from the chambers 0 through the several retorts, insinuating itself through all the interstitial spaces of the ore in them and oxidizing the iron and sulphur, and complet-.

in g the various chemical operations necessary to facilitate the conversion of all the metals in the ore into soluble chlorides. The perpetual discharge of these products of combustion from the chamber 9 will keep up the constant supply of air to the roasting charges in the several retorts.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is comprehended in the following claims:

1. The roasting and desulphurizing furnace P, which consists of the obliquely-inclined and tapering retorts I, standing on opposite sides of the grate-bars G in two parallel and opposite rows, in contact with each other at their upper ends, and forming below and within them the con'ibustion-chamber J, each row touching together by their lower and wider ends, so as to form the inside walls of the furnace and prevent the fuel and gases from pass ing between them, and spreading apart at their upper ends and leaving the open spaces M, together with the inclosing and obliquelyinclined walls K K, standing a little distant from the retorts, and the lower ends of which are pierced with the holes N N N, whereby the products of combustion, after heating the insides of the retorts and rising up into the chamber J, may be drawn through the open spaces M M and down through the chamber between the outsides of the retorts and the insides of the walls KK, so as to heat both sides of the retorts uniformly, and be discharged through the holes N N N by means of the suc tion or draft of a stack communicating with the said holes, or by means of the vacuumchamber P P formed between the walls 0 K, and exhausted through the holes R R and communicating-pipes Q S T and uptake U by means of the steam-jet V, all substantially in the manner shown and described.

2. In combination with the inner side walls, K K, the outside walls, 0 O,inclosing the exhaust-chambers P P, substantially in the manner and for the purposes set forth.

3. In combination with the retorts I, open at both ends, so that the process of charging and drawing may go on continuously, the openmouthed chambers c, from which the roasted products may be drawn, and through which abundance of atmospheric air may continually pass into and through the retorts and through the roasting charges, substantially in the manner and for the purposes hereinbefore shown and described.

. 4. The storage and vacuum chamber 9, in combination with the retorts I, substantially in the manner and for the purposes set forth.

5. The exhaust-pipe h and discharge-pipe i and steam-jet pipe j, in combination with the chamber 9, substantially in the manner and for the purposes shown and described.

6. The feed-in g-hoppers f, in combination with the chamber g, the boxes 0, and the retorts I, substantially in the manner and for the ob jects set forth.

7. The boxes 0 c e c c c 0, each one in combination with a pair of roasting-chambers, I, inclined obliquely toward each other and touching at their top ends, which are always open, whereby the ore or other materials to be roasted, with which each box is kept constantly filled, may fall, by its own gravity, into the two obliquely-inclined chambers underneath and keep them full when portions of the roasted charges are from time to time withdrawn from their lower ends, substantially as shown and described.

8. The blast-pipes W, Y, and Z, in combination with the chambers X and the ash-pit walls H, through which are pierced the holes a, substantially in the manner and for the purposes shown and described.

9. A continuous roasting and desulphuriz ing furnace, which consists of a heating-chamber placed in an oblique position, having its upper and lower ends wide open for charging and drawing the charges at pleasure, and for atmospheric air to pass freely through it in contact with the roasting materials by an upward draft, either natural or artificial, and having its upper and open end inclosed in a receptacle for storing the substances to be roasted, and for charging automatically the roastingchamber below, and for receiving and discharging the products of combustion by means of a draft, substantially as shown and de scribed.

HENRY W. ADAMS.

Witnesses:

E. It. BROWN, 0. SEDGWIOK. 

